Murder On The Menu: The 1st Nikki Hunter Mystery (Nikki Hunter Mysteries) Read Online Free PDF Page A

here?”
    “Yes,” she said. “But they didn’t find anything. At least they didn’t say they were taking anything.”
    I stepped back into the room and closed the door behind me, allowing the experience of being in the murdered woman’s space to sink into my consciousness. The room had been painted a soft mint green and the molding and window frames were a pale violet. An unusual combination of colors, but somehow it worked.
    I moved my gaze around the room from left to right. Near the door was an elaborate entertainment center with shelves of CDs, DVDs, and VHS cassettes.
    The wall beyond the entertainment center was covered with mirrored panels, and the floor was polished hardwood. There was an open door beyond the mirrored wall through which I could see an elegant bathroom. To the right of the bathroom door was a cheval glass turned at an angle toward the mirrored panels.
    There were two large windows, and between them stood a mahogany dresser over which hung another mirror. Centered on top of the dresser was a heavily varnished wooden box.
    The king-size bed against the wall to my right was covered with a patchwork quilt that looked handmade and homey. Propped up against the pillows was a stuffed Shrek doll. Above the bed was a framed photograph of a tropical island, azure water and waving palm trees. There were end tables on both sides of the bed, each with a mission-style lamp on top of a white lace doily.
    A set of double doors to the right of the bed had been left open, allowing me a glimpse of the huge walk-in closet. Shoes were lined up in pairs with the toes pointing toward the wall, and the clothes were all on hangers, nothing on the floor.
    If the space you live in reflects your self-image, keeping your bedroom tidy might suggest that you feel good about yourself. Of course, if that was true I was in big trouble. Maybe neatness was a futile attempt to control the chaos of everyday life. That sounded better to me.
    On the other side of the closet was a small desk, on top of which I spotted a framed family photo that looked like it had been taken at least ten years earlier. Laura, Kate, and Derrick, all facing the camera with their arms around each other, all of them smiling, but none of their smiles reached their eyes.
    I crossed the floor and stepped into the luxurious bathroom. I flipped up two light switches, one of which started an overhead fan. I turned that one off, since I didn’t need the distraction. The other switch illuminated a sun lamp bulb mounted in the ceiling and a row of very bright lights over a mirror that spanned the wall behind the sink. The oversized tub was equipped with Jacuzzi jets and the adjacent shower had two heads, plus a hand-held massage unit. It looked to me like the bathroom of a very sensuous young woman.
    The contents of the cabinets and drawers told me that Laura had purchased expensive cosmetics and rose-scented, French-milled soap. The medicine chest contained the usual items including a bottle of Excedrin PM, but no other drugs and no type of birth control. I lifted the lid of the toilet tank and looked inside, finding nothing that didn’t belong there. As I came out of the bathroom I flipped the cheval glass over and checked the back.
    I moved to the dresser and opened the varnished box. The theme song from Titanic began playing as I examined the contents. The box contained some expensive jewelry and some garish costume pieces, separated by a divider in the center. I pawed through the assortment with interest, but the music was getting to me. I hate sad movies. I closed the box and opened the top dresser drawer.
    I was once again struck by the fragrance of roses, and discovered that Laura had used sachets in her lingerie drawer. On the right was a collection of sporty white cotton briefs, sox, and jogging bras. On the left were black, purple, and red lace demi-bras, thongs, and a strapless navy blue bustier. In the other drawers I found Laura’s neatly folded